STOP THE SWEEPS

Join us in demanding that the Department of Conservation and Recreation put an end to the inhumane sweeps of our neighbors off of DCR land and offer them trash services instead - services that all other residents of the city have access to. 

Take Action!

  1. Send the below email to Department of Conservation and Recreation Commissioner Brian Arrigo
  2. Call Commissioner Arrigo at (617) 626-1250 and use the below phone script

Model Text for Email to Department of Conservation and Recreation Commissioner Brian Arrigo

Send to: Brian.Arrigo@mass.gov, Mass.Parks@mass.gov

Dear Commissioner Arrigo,

I am writing to you out of concern for DCR’s cruel and inhumane encampment sweep policies, specifically the upcoming sweep planned for Monday, February 3rd at the encampment off of Solider’s Field Road. 

While I admire DCR’s mission of protecting the land, I also urge you to respect the people who call this land home. Even if done in the “most humane” fashion, sweeps are never humane. The last sweep, which DCR claimed was “as humane as possible,” was described by one resident as the worst sweep she has experienced in nearly 10 years of being unhoused.  Almost everyone at the encampment is engaged with services and stuck simply waiting for housing. There is nowhere else for them to go. They will not simply disappear after a sweep. 

During sweeps, residents, many whom are disabled, are forced to move all of their possessions through rugged terrain in the freezing cold.  Sweeps like the ones DCR conducts keep people up for days straight and force them to dismantle vital weatherproofing that keeps them safe in this harsh weather. Residents are regularly yelled at and threatened with arrest by Massachusetts State Police. People lose IDs, birth certificates, essential survival supplies, and treasured belongings. Sweeps displace people, making it harder for service providers to find them and engage with them. Sweeps worsen health outcomes and make it harder for people to become housed. Sweeps increase the risk of fires by damaging or throwing out safer tent heaters that turn off when tipped over, leaving people relying on candles for heat and by throwing out other fire proofing tools like fire blankets and fire extinguishers. Sweeps are direct health and safety risks. There are no ways around these facts. 

No one more than the residents want to keep the land safe and trash free. These are their homes, and they love them just as you or I love our houses and apartments. Residents want desperately to avoid fires or trash build up that attracts rats. However, unlike everyone else in the city, the residents of the encampment do not have access to trash services, making it incredibly difficult for them to keep their spaces clean.  

I urge you to have compassion for the people living at the BU Bridge encampments and all other encampments on DCR land. I demand trash services for the people living on DCR land and an end to all sweeps. 

Please reply to let me know the actions you plan to take to address these concerns. Thank you.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

Call Script for DCR Commissioner Brian Arrigo: (617) 626-1250

“Hi, my name is _______________ and I am a resident of [TOWN]. My email address is [EMAIL]. 

I am calling to let Commissioner Brian Arrigo know that I oppose the many evictions of unhoused residents in the DCR properties located near the BU Bridge over the past year as well as the planned eviction on February 3. These evictions cut people off from critical outreach and public health services, and are deeply unsafe during the extremely cold winter weather, as people are asked to dismantle their shelters with no safe, warm place to go. 

The resources spent on these evictions would be better spent on providing trash removal services to these residents. 

Please reply to let me know the actions you plan to take to address these concerns. Thank you.”